Of all the complaints about the Bible, one of the most heated is the claim of misogynistic sentiments allegedly rooted in its passages.Those who cry “sexism!” also have a disdain for Christian culture, which they believe actively promotes the subjugation of women.By that logic, any woman who is Christian suffers from spiritual Stockholm syndrome. She is too subdued by her male brethren to break free of the religious bindings that shackle her mentally, sexually and emotionally.Or so naysayers claim.In reality, this notion — which most likely came to fruition because of poor reading, interpretation and context — couldn’t be further from the truth.The passages that draw the most feminist ire are found in the letters the apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians.While advising the church of Corinth about orderly worship, Paul advised the women to be silent during church. If they had any questions about worship proceedings, they were to direct their inquiries to their husbands after the service was finished.However provocative his words, Paul did not intend this to be a generalization about women. Rather, he was particularly addressing the women of the Corinth church to admonish them for disturbing the peace of the infant congregation.He wasn’t telling them to shut up because they were women. He was telling them to shut up because they were causing a ruckus with their shouted questions.Paul’s intentions were not born of bigotry at all — he simply desired to have the church of Corinth become “perfectly united in mind and thought,” and any action he took was made with that goal in mind.More commonly misinterpreted is another passage in Paul’s letter that seems to describe his advocacy for women wearing head coverings. But this is only true for a hasty reader.Paul actually goes on to provoke his archaic audience by probing them with biting rhetorical questions, all designed to challenge (and poke fun at) the legalistic status quo – including the notion wearing head coverings is somehow equivalent to spiritual wellness.Essentially, the mention of head coverings at the beginning of the passage was simply a set-up for a good bit of hazing at legalism’s expense.Hence we see a promotion of ideas that were, considering the societal atmosphere, countercultural and radically bold. Paul’s countercultural play is not only                provocative because of its content, but because of the authoritative spiritual claim it makes as the ideal culture of a church of God.Another misinterpreted passage, found in Ephesians, calls wives to submit to their husbands.Most see the word “submit” and make the premature judgment this passage is misogynistic. This assumption is unfortunate, as this passage reads differently when connected to the other half, which calls for husbands to show the same submission to their spouses.If anything, the demand on the husband can be viewed as more extreme because he is also instructed to love his wife so much he would die for her, if necessary. Hardly the picture of a wife-beater, I should think.Obviously, this concept does not promote female subjugation. It simply outlines the differences between the sexes and describes the ideal attitudes in a marriage – mutual submission as a mark of a love born of trust – while advocating equality.These passages, all of which reject of legalism and misogyny, are perhaps the most misunderstood concepts in the Bible.Sadly, this misunderstanding seems to be born of hasty reading and uniformed judgment more so than reasonable objection.
Historical context is everything. Considering the status of women during that time, the ideas promoted in the Bible – Corinthians in particular – actually do more to serve the interest of women than most other organizations of that time period.Linnie Leavines is a 19-year-old mass communication sophomore from Central City. Follow her on Twitter @TDR_lleavines.–Contact Linnie Leavines at [email protected]